Holly Robinson Peete Blasts Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Autism Claims: 'This Is Some 'Bulls--t'

During a news conference on Wednesday, which marked his first since becoming Trump's Secretary of Health and Human Services, RFK Jr. discussed a recent CDC study about the rise of autism diagnoses in the country, and made a handful of controversial -- and often false -- claims about the disorder, which subsequently received criticism online.

The National Institute of Mental Health defines autism or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as a "neurological and developmental disorder that affects how people interact with others, communicate, learn, and behave."

Kennedy -- who has no medical degree or background -- referred to autism as a "disease," which it is not, and described the rising rates as "alarming" and an "epidemic." He also criticized how experts have equated the increase to a "recognition or changing diagnostic criteria," claiming instead that "environmental toxins" are to blame.

Much of the criticism surrounding Kennedy's press conference centered on his widely inaccurate comments about the day-to-day lives of children who have autism, as well as how it affects their loved ones.

"Autism destroys families, and more importantly, it destroys our greatest resource, which is our children. These are children who should not be suffering like this," he said. “These are kids who will never pay taxes. They'll never hold a job. They'll never play baseball. They'll never write a poem. They'll never go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted."

After RFK Jr.'s comments went viral, Peete was among those who slammed the HHS secretary online. The actress -- whose 27-year-old son, RJ, was diagnosed with autism when he was three -- shared multiple posts on social media, including a nearly eight-minute-long video on Instagram, in which she addressed a handful of Kennedy's claims about the disorder, calling his remarks "triggering," ingornant, and ultimately, "bulls--t."

"I don't even know where to start. I really don't even know where to begin. So much to unpack," Peete, 60, began in her video. "Let's start here. Okay. I am not an expert. I'm not a doctor. I'm just somebody's mama and someone who's been advocating for the autism community, a community that I care deeply about, for 25 years. And I don't know everything, but I do know this: autism is not a disease. It is a disorder, a developmental disorder. And it is important to get that right if you are the Secretary of Health and Human Services."

"So that, off the top, really triggered me. And then came the list of nevers," she said, referring to RFK Jr.'s false claims of things autistic kids will "never" do.

Peete recalled how she's previously discussed that when RJ was diagnosed in 2000, the developmental pediatrician "rolled out a laundry list of 'nevers' that RJ would never do, never be, never have, never achieve," noting that they "call it the 'never' day."

"She said he would never mainstream in school, have friends, have meaningful employment, drive, live on his own, never say 'I love you,' never play team sports. I mean, this lady had a long list of things that she said he would never do. And so when the Secretary of Health and Human Services just ran off another never list, it triggered me in ways I can't even describe."

The 21 Jump Street star said her son is now 27 and has "actually checked off and shattered most of those nevers off of that list," adding, "So when I hear someone like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. say, and describe our children as 'family destroyers,' I felt the weight of every parent who's ever had to fight three times, four times as hard just to prove their child's worth. And it just plays into every stereotype and stigma that every person with autism has ever had to fight to overcome."

"As an advocate, I've had to fight against it, as well, and [as] a mom, because what he's peddling here, it's not just ignorance, it is institutionalized hopelessness," she continued. "Lemme say that again. It is institutionalized hopelessness from the very office that's supposed to protect public health. We're getting fear, and, shame, and blame, and misinformation. This is not okay. Autism didn't break my family. It made us braver, it made us closer, it made us more compassionate. If anything, I think my son didn't rob me of having a normal child, he gave me a new lens of what it means to love unconditionally. A new lens on that."

"Now, of course, there are different amounts of support that people on the autism spectrum are gonna need with different tasks in life. And, you know, they're gonna have different levels of needs, but these are things that they can overcome," she added. "And any official that's tasked with leading this nation's health policies, they should be celebrating the resilience of families that have overcome things, not dismissing them and giving us another 'never' day."

The former Talk host highlights that one of the biggest "challenges facing autism families revolves around access to diagnosis and treatment and support, especially in black and brown communities who are diagnosed way later than white communities -- sometimes two to five years later, and they miss these crucial windows of intervention."

"So we deserve better. We deserve to be talking about those things. Our children deserve better. Our families living with autism don't need pity and blame. We need policies," she continued, before sharing her "call to action" for RFK Jr.

"If you're gonna speak for us, learn from us. Walk into a classroom or a nonprofit or a therapy center, or our family's living room, and talk to autistic adults who are thriving, contributing, and redefining what it means to live fully in a world that doesn't accept them," Peete declared. "And listen before you speak, because your words carry weight. And right now, they're just crushing the very people you've been entrusted to protect. Now, I know this administration doesn't really think highly of words and how they impact people, but this is very important."

She then shared a message for "every parent, to every educator, to every advocate, every self-advocate listening to this, and especially families who are just getting the diagnosis today."

"Please do not let one man's ignorance drown out the truth that we live every single day. And don't ever let anybody define the possibilities for your child," Peete said. "Autism is not a family-destroying tragedy, the negative way that people speak on it, that's the tragedy."

As for her son, Peete said, he pays his taxes, uses the toilet on his own, and has written her poems. And while he doesn't play baseball himself, he's worked for the Los Angeles Dodgers for 10 seasons, before joking that they're still "working on" RJ's love life. "Don't rush him!"

She ended her video with a powerful message, and also threw in a curse word she said she'd been holding in.

"Look, having autism, having a loved one with autism is not easy. It's not easy. And it can be very, very hard. But different families have different ways of overcoming it. And what we're not doing is sitting here and labeling and limiting the potential of our children," Peete said. "You know, I always say I would never change RJ for the world, but I will always try to change the world for RJ. And what we're not gonna do is talk down on autism families and give them no hope."

"So we gotta do better because this is some bulls--t that I just heard," she concluded. "You know, I was dying to cuss this whole time. ... It's not okay."

Meanwhile, Peete also shared a few posts on X, formerly Twitter, in which she hit back at those who criticized her backlash of Kennedy.

"What in the Actual F???? I need to calm down and gather my thoughts. I'll be back in a minute," she wrote in her first post, alongside a clip of RFK Jr.

"My 27-year-old son with autism didn't 'destroy our family' -- he gave us purpose and unity… oh, and he pays taxes," she added in another.

After a user responded to her post, writing, "I'm very happy for you. But many don't. Don't cheapen the efforts of those fighting for those less fortunate," Peete called out the critic.

"I don't cheapen anything. I've been advocating for families for years," she said. "I just don’t like him using those generalizations - you can rob hope from many families. Institutionalized hopelessness is not helpful. Let's talk about programs and services to help the families."

Responding to another tweet that had been deleted, she wrote, "As someone who's lived through this journey for 25 years you don't get to tell me what I'm missing, to which another user made crude comments about a 20-year-old on the spectrum.

The singer clarified that she is an "advocate for hundreds of fans over the years all across the spectrum it's not just about my son," adding that she doesn't like to "focus on what kids may Never do …I wish the focus was on diagnosis, acceptance and helping families cope…"

Journalist Jemele Hill showed her support for Peete on X, which she reposted.

"Thinking of my friend @hollyrpeete who has raised a productive, amazing autistic son, who is fearless, gainfully employed and pays taxes," Hill wrote alongside a clip of RFK Jr. "These were disgusting, irresponsible comments by someone who is charged with overseeing public health for hundreds of millions of people. He is not qualified for this."